Today’s introduction comes from Jennifer Medina, a national correspondent based in Los Angeles.

Latinos make up the majority of students in California. And the state is widely regarded as being a bastion of Latino political power, with Latinos holding many of the top positions in Sacramento. And yet, a new report from The Education Trust-West shows a stark and persistent achievement gap between Latino and white students. In every county in the state the majority of Latino students are not proficient in math or English language arts.

The report also found that California’s Latino students attend some of the country’s most segregated schools, lack access to early childhood education, are often pushed away from college-prep coursework in high school and are more likely to be required to take remedial classes in colleges and universities.

“We continue to talk about Latinos in the education world as if they are a subgroup and a minority but they are absolutely the majority,” said Ryan Smith, executive director of The Education Trust-West. “So the question is what does that mean for our K-12 education system. I think of it like this: If we saw the type of challenges for white students that we see for Latino students, we know that the government and others would declare a state of emergency. Latinos have more political power than ever before, but students seem to be lagging behind in every indicator.”

It would be tempting to assume that at least some of the gap is because of struggles to learn English, Mr. Smith said, but only one-third of Latino students in the state are considered English Language Learners. And the report points out that 95 percent of the state’s Latinos who are younger than 18 are native-born.

“It challenges our belief that these students can’t achieve,” Mr. Smith said. “Given the numbers we have an economic and moral imperative to turn the corner.”

California Online

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Qualcomm is a longtime leader in the semiconductor industry that has fallen on hard times, facing a protracted legal battle with Apple and an antitrust investigation in Europe.CreditAlbert Gea/Reuters

• After much speculation, the semiconductor company Broadcom confirmed that it has offered to buy the San Diego-based chip maker Qualcomm for $105 billion. It would be the biggest takeover in the history of the technology industry. [The New York Times]

• The disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein used private detectives, lawyers and undercover agents to try to stop The New York Times and The New Yorker from publishing their investigations into allegations of sexual harassment and assault against him. [The New York Times]

• BART has undertaken a $2.6 billion project to update and replace its aging fleet of cars. Officials had hoped to roll out the first set of new cars by Thanksgiving, but they have failed a key safety inspection, raising questions about whether that will be possible. [The Mercury News]

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The Los Angeles Times’s offices in Los Angeles. The Walt Disney Company has criticized the newspaper’s coverage of the company’s business dealings in Anaheim, Calif.CreditEmily Berl for The New York Times

• The Walt Disney Company said it would once again allow The Los Angeles Times to attend press screenings of its movies. The company had faced heavy backlash for its decision to block critics’ access following an investigation by the newspaper into Disney’s business dealings in Anaheim, home of Disneyland. [The New York Times]

• Snapchat’s user growth is slowing, its revenue growth is failing to live up to expectations, and as a result, the company’s latest financial snapshot has disappointed Wall Street — again. [The New York Times]

• A destructive fire in Orange County that burned more than 9,200 acres and destroyed 15 homes was ignited by embers from a previous fire, officials say. [The Orange County Register]

• California regulators have approved a $383 million plan aimed at slowing the demise of the Salton Sea. The lake is an important habitat for hundreds of species of birds and, when healthy, it acts as a buffer against swirling dust that can sicken residents of nearby farming towns. [The Associated Press]

• Three U.C.L.A. men’s basketball players were arrested this week in China for shoplifting. The team opens its season against Georgia Tech in Shanghai later this week. A younger brother of the Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball was among those detained. [ESPN]

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Dara Khosrowshahi, the new chief executive of Uber, introduced a new list of corporate values that strike a softer tone for a company with a combative reputation.CreditAdriano Machado/Reuters

• Uber’s new chief executive, Dara Khosrowshahi, has begun the hard work of repairing his ride-hailing company’s image. Among Uber’s new mantras: “We do the right thing. Period.” [The New York Times]

• Light snow over the weekend allowed Mount Rose-Ski Tahoe to become the first Tahoe-area resort to open for the ski season. Officials say it’s looking like another good year. [San Francisco Chronicle]

• Even the car pool lanes of the Bay Area’s congested freeways have slowed to a crawl. So transit officials are considering replicating a requirement that’s already in use on one interstate: Vehicles may soon need to contain at least three people. [SFGate.com]

And Finally ...

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Diane Feinstein speaking to reporters in 2014. The fight for her Senate seat is one of several important California races coming in 2018.CreditGabriella Demczuk/The New York Times

On Tuesday, voters across the country returned to the polls. Believe it or not, Wednesday marks one full year since Election Day 2016.

And while some states held votes that attracted national attention — the governor’s race in Virginia, for example — Californians had only local contests to decide.

But don’t fret. Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a political analyst and professor at the University of Southern California, said the eyes of the national political parties will turn back to California soon enough.

There’s a governor’s race in 2018, and a fight brewing over Dianne Feinstein’s senate seat. And perhaps most important to national onlookers, Dr. Bebitch Jeffe said, “California will play a major role in determining whether the Democrats have a chance of retaking the House.” As many as nine of 14 Republican seats could be vulnerable, she said.

“They’re already running around beating up one another,” she said of the various candidates. “Californians are not patient.”